the fact that i was able to get a master's degree at the london school of economics, my mom was thrilled at that when she was alive. i could tell when my dad died and i went to his funeral and i heard everyone come up to me and say, he talks about you all the time. my dad passed away, and i was cleaning out his house. i found he had saved a lot of old articles of mine, including articles i had written in high school and college. he saved the clippings somewhere. i found these. he never told me that. it was a nice touch. >> where did your interest come from? did you ever have anybody in your life say, they pushed me in that direction? >> it was my parents, my mom and my dad, and primarily my dad. whatever you do, try to be the best. he was the real source of inspiration. he was one of the smartest guys i ever knew. self-read. he would say, did you know abraham lincoln said this? i would look it up and it was true. the house was always filled with books and he was a real reader. that part came from him. in terms of inspiration, a lot of people helped me on the way. i did not know how to pu